Proto-Chinese Phonology
Syllable Structure # The Proto-Chinese syllable had the following structure. (C1)C2(C3)(C4)V(C5)(C6)(C7) Pre-initial Consonant (C1) # The pre-initial consonant was an optional consonant that could be either s, n, or m. (s was pretty common. n and m were not very common, at least as far as I can reconstruct.) Initial Consonant (C2) # The initial consonant had to be one of the following 34 consonants. Stop Nasal Fricative Approximant Glottal ʔ h Velar k kʰ g gʱ ŋ ŋ̊ Palatal c cʰ ɟ ɟʱ ɲ ɲ̊ Alveolar t tʰ d dʱ n n̥ s sʰ z r l r̥ l̥ Labial p pʰ b bʱ m m̥ w First Medial Consonant (C3) # The first medial consonant was an optional r or l.
About Proto-Chinese
Proto-Chinese is the earliest stage of Chinese that can be reconstructed. All modern dialects of Chinese descend from Proto-Chinese. In reconstructing historical Chinese, one can use: evidence from the pronunciation of modern spoken languages; evidence from ancient Chinese dictionaries; and evidence from the Chinese writing system. As it turns out, the Chinese writing system provides insights about Proto-Chinese (such as the existence of aspirated nasals) that cannot be discerned from studying modern spoken dialects alone. Thus, the Chinese writing system appears to pre-date the diversification of Chinese into the numerous modern dialects.